Trolley-conductor.



w. HOOPES 1 T. VARNEY.

TROLLEY CONDUCTOR APPLICATION r1150 SEPT. 1. 1915.

1,157,394. Patented 001;. 19, 1915.

INVENTORS Wi/l/am Hoopea & Theodore l d/wey.

ATTORNEY COLUMBIA PLANDCIRAPH co.. WASHINGTON. n. c.

- WILLIAM'EQOPES Ann THEODORE VARNES'L'LOF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA.

' TROLLEY-CONDUCTOR.

Specification of 'LettersPatent.

PatentedOct. 1-9, 1915'.

'flriginalapplication filed July 11,1914; seria Nb- 5 Divided and this'apllicaim filed September i v V1915, serialNo. 48,406.

To all whom iii may concern: p A: Beit known thatwe, WnlLmMl-Ioorns and TH ODQR 'N ARNEY, citizens of the United and residents of Pittsburgh, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsyl- Vania, have invented. a new and useful 1m provement in'Trolley-Conductors, of which States,

; .the following is a specification, this applicatures of the so-called catenary type.

tion being a division" ofourapplication Serial No, 851,4:62, filed July 17, 1,914.

Our invention relatesto overhead electric railway structures and particularly to struc- The object of our invention s to provide a conductor of relatively light weight that shall have a large current-carrying capacity a-ndsuch strength and rigidity as to adapt itto withstand the, heavy pressure and shocks -Fsi0rr and contraction, under'changes in temperature, without danger ofbuckling or beof current-collecting devices that are employed upon such railway locomotives and cars as are operated at high speeds and that ing subjected to undue strains, at any season of the year or under any operating conditions.

In the operation of railways by electricity,

the tendency is toward the use of high volt ages andlarge amounts of power.- Heretofore, when high voltageshave been em'-- ployed, -conductor wires of comparatively similar' to those which other type; On accountof the high voltage and onaccount ofthe trouble due toordi having the wire sufficiently high above the l tain'points, the framework which supports the collecting shoehas. necessar ly been o'f.-

nary trolley wheels leaving the wire high.- speeds, .it has generally beennecessary to use. some form of sliding, shoe or rollerv collector.

Furthermore, on account of the necessityfof rail to; clear ordinary, freight .cars having men on them, an'dalso becausethere .are usually low bridges or" other obstructions which require therwire to be lowered. at certhe collector in contact with the Wire.

rather than beside the track.

such substantial construction that veryconsiderable pressure has been necessary to keep 7 It has also been found that the various forms of small wire conductors suspended over the tracks and kept taut under a relatively high longitudinal stress have caused difliculty, on account of changes of temperature. Devices,jembodying springs, have been tried for -maint'aining a comparatively uniform tension'o'n the'conductor' wire but, on account ofthe high tension such devices have been very heavy, cumbersome, and, in ther'nain, unsatisfactory,

The most successful type of stationary conductor which hasbeen used, in so far as the collection of currenttherefrom'by'a movrail. The reason' for this has been that the rail isrigid and has a relatively large amount of'transverse stiffness so that relatively heavypressure may be employed in" meet certain other conditions of service, it is advisable to have the conductonoverhead invention is designed to combine, in an overhead conductor suitable for use with high voltages, the mechanical running qualities of the third rail. For this purpose'we have devised the arrangement shown in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a diagrammatic sideje'levational view of a'portlon of anoverhead structure embodying our'invention, parts be ing broken away. Fig.2 is a view, inside elevation, .of theIadjacent ends of two conductor sections and their'con'necting devices, and Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken'on'li'ne A -A of Fig. 2'.

Our present ing train is concerned, 'ha's' been the third We employ a continuous'strip 1 of metal of preferably, though not necessarily, rectangular-cross section having high electrical conductivity, the thickness of which is small,

as compared with its width. For example,

a strip of aluminumv one-fourth inch thick by two inches wide is" suitable for the purpose. V The strips 1 may be produced, for

7 intervals of approximately tenfeet. I

convenience in handling,in lengths of three hundred feet or thereabouts. They may be rolled up for shipmentand be unrolled and installed at the place of use. Although any 7 one of a variety of means for supporting the strips may be employed, a suitable means; comprises a steel catenarycable, 2, supporting structures 3,,that may be spaced ap proximately three. hundred feet apart, and;

hangers e that may be" suitably connected to the conducting strip and to the'cable at Inorder that the 'condu ctingstrips 1 may not be worn away or otherwise injured by the collector, we provide shoes 5 at the'lower edge of the strip, which may be of comparatively cheap material and-not necessarily of high electrical conductivity, since they are in immediate contact with the conducting strip. 7

For example, a suitable material for the shoes is'galvanized steel. The shoes may be of any desired and suitable length and cross sectional form and may be atta hed to the strip 'lby anysuitable means. i

On account of the longitudinal expansion ,7 and contraction of the conductor strips 1', under changes i in temperature, springs 6 may be insertedbetweerr the adjacent ends.

The springs 6 may have a maximum move-.

ment of app'roxiinatelysix inches andmay .give a'maximum tension, when extended, of about five hundred pounds, and a minimum 7 tension, when closed, of about two hundred pounds. The object of this -tension is to facilitate the expansion and contraction of" the strip without causing buckling, but it' s will be observed that the tension is so low f 7 that the results indicated may be obtained 1 40 by a comparatively light spring, which will be'cheap and will not occupy much space.

'Springs of any type or kind having suitable strength and resilience'may be em-'\ ployed but, as desirable examples, we have shown in the drawings, springs of the leaf type that are disposed at right anglesto the strips 1, to the ends of which" they are attachedby means of members 7. As shown, '1' the members 7 are riveted tothe'lower ends of the spring members and are'pivotally fastened to; the ends of the'strips.

suitableauxiliary bonding meansll for the strips may,

adjacent ends of the conductor of course,beernployed.

For'the purpose'of guiding the collector smoothly over the joint between the ends of the strips, we provide side plates 8the lower edges of which deviate upwardly,

' a slightidegree, from astraight'li'ne toward their ends and terminate in rounded corners;

The side plates are clamped in position by bolts 9 or otherwise, and, atone side'of the joint between the meeting ends *of the strips said aluminum strips; *1 V r v V 4:. A trolley-conductor comprising long" strips of good-conducting material disposed j end-to-end, hanger rods'dis'posed at inter-1' vals along said strips, resiliently expansiblei hangers for the adjacent endsl'of said strips,

and"contact piecesdisposed along the said 10 'to receive the bolts'9 in ordenthatex- I pansion and contraction of thestrips 1, un- V V der changes in temperature, may not'bepre vented. r

The Contact shoes may,. of course, be made in or ofanyiother lengththatmay' be desired. If relatively long shoes are employed, it

of thefsaine lengths as the conductor strips 1, they are provided with longitudinal slots I vI 5 will ,prob ably'be found necessaryor advisable, to employ springs between-their adjaf cents'ends, that maybe similar to those employed bet een thefends .ofthe conductor T 7' strips, as indicated drawings. V i The-structural may obviously be otherwise variously modified from what wefhave specifically shown pended claims.

, We claim asour invention:

in Figs. 2 andi3 of the details of'our invention 1. Altrolley conductor; comprising long and described,- within the' scope of the. ap-

stripsofgood-conducting material supyj V.

ported end-to-end, resilient members con:

the said strips, o,

ways, comprising long end-to end strips 'of aluminum, springs interposed betweenlthe ends of said strips, bridging strips for spanning the joints between'said ends,icon-'=- tact pieces disposed end-to-e'nd and slightly spacedapart, and means forclamping said contact'pieces against the 'bottomj'edges of strips. 1

5.*A-trolley'conductor comprisingfa plurality. of long strip'sf o f metal disposed end-J to-end,".r esiliently 'expansible hangers forthej: adjacent; ends of said strips, bridging. strips :for the joints between said ends, and 1 contact' pieces disposed end-'to-end along the 5 V j ,r6.-'A tro-lley conductor forielectricrail-1 ways, comprising long end-to-end strips'off aluminum,yresiliently expansible hangers said long' stripsi for 'tlieadjacent ends of said"strips,vbridg ing strips for spanning the joints. between said ends, contact pieces disposed erid-tO-nd In testimony whereof, we have hereunto i0 and slightly spaced apart, and means for V subscribed our names this 12th day of Auclamping said contact pieces against the bottonp Edges of said aluminum strips. gust, 1915.

v trolley conductor comprisin long I strips of good-conducting material di sposed 1 'end-to-end, hanger rods disposed at interl vals along said strips, double leaf-spring Witnesses:

EMMA UHLINGER,

hangers for the ends of said strips, and con- V. PEARL SNYDER.

tact pieces disposed along the said strips.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

